A review by bzliz
This Spells Love by Kate Robb

funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

When Gemma’s 4 year long relationship suddenly ends, a margarita fueled “spell” cast by Gemma, her sister, her aunt, and her best friend Daxon misfires and sends Gemma to an alternate timeline where Dax has no memory of her. Her new life is better in some ways- she’s a successful small business owner rather than a tired buyer for a big chain store- and worse in others, namely that she doesn’t have Dax in her corner. Aunt Vivi advises her they have a month until they can try to reverse the effects. In that time, Gemma cultivates a relationship with Dax that leaves her wondering if they should’ve been together all along. 

I like Aunt Vivi’s witchy vibes and the little glimpse at her weird book club. Gemma wasn’t my ideal MC. Her choice felt pretty obvious to me. It was interesting that the misguided spell
didn’t alter the flow of time. Gemma came into her new life missing a lot of knowledge and spent a month there, the returned to her time a month later and had to put the pieces together again.
I feel like that’s not often the case with timeline swap stories. I also wish the resolution was a little longer. 

There is some spice in the book but it wasn’t my favorite. It felt weirdly clinical and then I felt even worse when I saw the author calling out her husband in the acknowledgments for his inspiring genitalia. The steam leading up to the spice was better and I felt the tension building up between them. I wish it had been left at that or that the author had a better editor for those scenes. 
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